None of chemical weapons abandoned by Japan in China has been desposed, Beijing's representative to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said in the Hague on Tuesday, and urged Tokyo to start disposing them as soon as possible.

"Despite some progress made in this regard, not a single abandoned chemical weapon (ACW) in China has been disposed of till date," said Xue Hanqin, China's permanent representative to OPCW and the country's ambassador to the Netherlands.

"We urge the Japanese side to heighten their sense of urgency, speed up their efforts and ensure the safe, complete and timely destruction of the ACWs. China will, as always, provide full cooperation."

Speaking at the 50th session of the OPCW Executive Council in the Hague, she said: "The disposal of ACWs is an integral and important part of the Convention," according to the website of the Chinese embassy in the Netherlands yesterday.

OPCW is an international agency and was set up in the Hague in 1997 by member countries of the Chemical Weapons Convention Treaty to verify the destruction of the declared chemical weapons stockpiles within stipulated deadlines.

China has submitted a progress report to the OPCW Executive Committee, and made a presentation at the chemical weapons' destruction briefing to update the status of the disposal of the Japanese ACWs in China, Xue said.

Xue praised Albania as the "first possessor state to complete the destruction of its entire chemical weapon stockpile".

She urged all the possessor states to increase their financial and personnel inputs to quicken the destruction process because the deadline of 2012 to completely destroy all chemical weapon stockpiles is approaching.

China Daily

(China Daily 09/28/2007 page2)